Edited and Reloaded 11-2-15


Chapter 11: Good Slytherin Punting

December 6

After Draco had finished his nightly routine, climbed into bed, and closed his curtains he pulled out the envelope he had received earlier that evening. From the handwriting he could tell it was from Hermione and he hadn't wanted anyone else to ask about it. This was the first chance he'd had to read it in private.

Draco~

I made the switch yesterday evening. This morning at breakfast the rat received a dose of his new tonic. I didn't think it prudent to ask after the beast's health without it seeming conspicuous. I'll keep an ear out in case our time table changes but we should be set for our target date. -H

Good. The idea to keep the rat dosed and his defenses down would provide them with the opening they needed to capture him with minimal risk, especially of personal exposure. They didn't want Wormtail to know who had captured him. After all, no one was supposed to know he was alive let alone where he was. The target date was the 19th, the morning of the Hogwarts Express leaving to take students home for the holidays. Students packing out their trunks and general craziness would cause enough confusion for Ron not to know what had happened to his precious Scabbers until it was too late.

In other news...his visit to Snape's office this evening hadn't been horrible. It turns out there was a wee bit of confusion about the holidays. Mother had written and said he could stay at the school but Lucius had written to Snape and told him that Draco would be coming home. When Draco showed his mother's letter to his head of house, Snape got up and started pouring himself a drink. Two fingers later Snape sent him away with a reassurance that it would be dealt with.

XxXxXxX

Severus Snape had just left to return to Hogwarts. Narcissa turned to her husband and regarded him with a rather cool demeanor. "We talked about this before I sent Draco my consent. I will not have the holidays ruined by you two fighting. It's better for him to stay at Hogwarts and study or be with friends right now."

"I simply do not understand what that boy is thinking anymore. He's done nothing but defy me at every turn since he returned to school. He used to write to me two or three times a week. But there hasn't been a single owl from him." Lucius stood near the desk with a glass in his hand, his third since Severus had arrived earlier. Narcissa, ever the proper lady, had apologized to Severus on Lucius behalf and explained that there had been some confusion. Draco was more than welcome to stay at Hogwarts.

Narcissa sat in the chair near the fire place, the warmth of which was in direct contrast to her tone. "There have been plenty of owls. Your rather petulant display at the beginning of September and complete disregard for your son's witness of the events may very well have contributed to the current rift between you."

"We've discussed his attack. What's done is done."

"No. You've discussed his attack with your contacts at the Ministry. At no point did you sit down with me and talk about what happened. Draco was injured during class while protecting a fellow student and yet you saw fit to punish him."

"Yes! The boy shouldn't have risked himself or his safety for a mudblood."

"Be that as it may you are using your son's injury in a political move and Draco wants no part of it. I've done some information gathering of my own about the incident. The Slytherin students' reports matched with Draco's. Young Miss Parkinson bares the blame for his injury not Miss Granger. Oh, it would also seem that your targeted attack against Dumbledore through Mr. Hagrid and his hippogriff has resulted in the students learning about flobberworms, how exciting."

Lucius chose to ignore the blatant sarcasm and turned and walked across the room before sitting in his own chair facing his wife. "What about the incident with the boggart? That Lupin shouldn't be teaching."

"Remus Lupin appears to be quite competent and Draco reports that they have learned more in two months than in the previous two years of defense. A pity really when you consider the fact that it's unlikely he'll last longer than his predecessors in the position. Regardless, a professor can hardly be held accountable for a student's unknown fear. Would you have our son unable to defend himself against something as easily handled as a boggart?"

"I don't understand what happened! What was it about his boggart that required you to stay with him for so long? He's thirteen not four! Severus would only say that it appeared to be a dead body by all reports. Draco's reaction made him look a fool!"

"So that's it then. It's not concern for your son but your wounded pride that he couldn't face his fears and laugh at them. Draco requested that we never discuss it, though he knows it's unlikely. I did speak to Professor Lupin while our son rested under Madame Pomfrey's care. It was a body. He didn't get a good look at it as he was far more concerned for the living students than the illusion, as it should be. Before Madame Pomfrey was able to administer treatment though I did hear Draco say something about his 'angel'."

Lucius glared into the fire while gripping his empty glass. Narcissa had always allowed him a certain amount of latitude with Draco. But she had also always made it clear that their son was her first priority. Before the end of September his wife had reminded him of this fact. Her personal experiences growing up in the Black family, especially exposure to Walburga Black had impacted her greatly. In fact it was dear old Aunt Walburga who, when she met baby Draco for the first time, told Narcissa to simply drown the runt if he ever showed signs of being less than purely Slytherin. Better to start over from scratch than to be publicly shamed once the child reached Hogwarts. Narcissa had made it clear that That Woman would never be welcome in her home again. She had even gone so far as to assign one of the Malfoy House Elves to full time guard duty over baby Draco.

After several minutes of silence from her husband, Narcissa stood from her chair and moved to head up to her bedroom considering the late hour. At the door she stopped and looked back to her husband to address him one last time before leaving him to his thoughts. "I will say this Lucius, if I ever learn who this girl is I will move heaven and earth to see my son happy."

XxXxXxX

There were seven years of students attending Hogwarts and therefore seven levels of Potions class that Severus Snape currently taught. Without a doubt though the most contentious in terms of interhouse relations was the third year. The rivalry between Potter and Draco was nearly legendary and it set the bar for the rest of their housemates. A rivalry that could have very well been avoided if Potter hadn't been so pompous when Draco introduced himself before the boys were even sorted. The fact that Potter was strutting about the train before he'd even started his education had hurt Severus more than he would have liked to admit, even to himself. It wasn't a pleasant revelation when he realized that the only thing Potter inherited from his mother were his eyes.

During their first night in the castle, after the welcoming feast, Severus had called his godson to his office to make sure he was getting settled and to hear about his experiences so far. Draco had been animated relaying what it was like on the Hogwarts Express. He even mentioned a girl, he'd never met her before, with captivating brown eyes that had eagerly tried to introduce herself before she had been rudely interrupted by the Longbottom boy shouting about a missing 'Trevor'. Draco's demeanor during the re-telling seemed to dim at this point as he recounted that the girl, who hadn't finished giving him her name, turned away from him abruptly and centered her focus on the boy with the missing 'Trevor'. The two left the compartment together without a look back and left Draco standing there like a fool.

When Severus dared to ask who she was now that everyone was sorted, Draco's eyes darkened and he said it didn't matter anymore. She was a Gryffindor and did not have a pureblood name. It wasn't hard of course for the Potions Professor to determine who the girl was. Miss Granger, though well read, had a bad habit of strutting her knowledge and not giving her classmates a chance. Needing to prove herself better than those around her had earned her the title of insufferable know-it-all in Snape's opinion. He felt vindicated in this opinion of course when Miss Granger had freely admitted that she believed herself, at barely twelve years of age, perfectly capable of taking on a fully grown mountain troll single handedly.

Draco's attention to Miss Granger had taken on a decidedly hostile flavor for the last two years. The incident on the quidditch pitch the previous year when he had called her a 'mudblood' seemed to be a turning point in terms of how dangerous the rift between the two houses was going to be. The staff had been fully prepared at the beginning of this year to have to intervene frequently until Dumbledore had ordered all of them to stand down and allow the children to be children. Snape had found this to be infuriating. Dumbledore continued to make allowances and bend the school rules for his personal pet projects.

First day of school this year had seen a Slytherin severely injured during a joint class with Gryffindor. The staff was collectively stunned though when they learned about the mixed ranks during the fight in class and that it wasn't a Gryffindor vs Slytherin situation as would be fully expected. Over the last few months Severus had been left scratching his head in confusion, metaphorically speaking of course. Potter wasn't starting fights, Draco wasn't starting fights, Granger no longer had ants in her pants, and the rest of their housemates were taking their marching orders accordingly. Though Weasley still had a bit of a mouth on him it was currently more preoccupied with the next meal in the Great Hall. The two houses were hardly friends of course but they were no longer actively looking for each other's blood.

From what Severus had observed so far this year in his godson's behavior he could easily determine that the boy had grown a backbone. Draco no longer simpered and whined but looked on life with a cool observation that screamed Slytherin. He had even taken to quietly coaching his fellow denizens of the snake pit in the art of observation and subtlety. A few of them were already more inclined to this approach in Slytherin tactics and were willing to help lead by quiet example. Not surprisingly, Daphne Greengrass was now seen as the epitome of behavior and deportment for the third year and younger girls. He wasn't sure what Miss Parkinson was writing home about but if the letter on his desk from her parents was any indication then Miss Parkinson did not like being outclassed.

Draco had been called the Slytherin Prince before but that had more to do with the fact that no one wanted to cross Mr. Malfoy or his money and political influence. The change in behavior and the apparent natural leadership and influence in his social group was rapidly earning him the right to that title. If he continued on this path than he would be a Hogwarts graduate that Salazar himself would be proud of. Pride from his own father though may be harder to garner. Severus had overheard the new standard that the older Slytherins had scoffed at. What did blood status matter if a wizard of less than pureblood was able to aid in your ambition?

Since the new dynamics with the younger years in Slytherin House were all purely Slytherin in nature the tattle-tale network had not yet flared up and reported the changes to Mr. Malfoy. As it was though, Lucius Malfoy wasn't sure what to do about the changes he had seen in his son's behavior. One day soon Severus feared he would have to talk to his friend about the changes that normally occurred in a young man during his formative years at school. Severus would like to see Draco become a man of integrity and honor but had little hope for it while his godson continued to blindly seek his father's acceptance. A father whose own honor was broken while he scraped and bowed to a fickle psychopath.

TBC